


Night Walk

by ancallis



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Gen, Slight pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2018-12-10
Packaged: 2019-09-15 11:09:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16932168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ancallis/pseuds/ancallis
Summary: A cycle he has been familiarized with. Men have always terrified her.





	Night Walk

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: mention of rape and mature themes.

Her pulse rose quickly. She’s sweating on her forehead and palms. How unsightly of a lady. Yet, ladies don’t drink four beers and take three shots of tequila and walk out of the bar teetering on the fine line between drunkenness and being absolutely trashed, the temptation of sauntering over to the man she’s loved for god knows how many years’ apartment sizzling on her lips. 

A man is following her. She’s a ninja, it’s in her blood after all, but this makes her uneasy. Her stomach roils at the thought of what he could do to her. Or perhaps it’s just the alcohol. But, maybe it isn’t. Maybe it’s the fact that sex absolutely terrifies her, and that every time she does have sex, she tightens up and fakes every moan and pant. The fact that she’d rather have her fingernails slowly peeled off with a rusty screwdriver than to ever get raped. 

She could easily kill the man following her home. She reaches for a small kunai knife hidden on her body, touching the security of it. 

Her body is highly coveted by men and women. She’s noticed her father’s hard, killing gaze at old men salaciously reveling in her curves since she was eleven. The one time he did snap and yell at a group of men. “She’s eleven! Gross! If I fucking catch you looking at her like that again, I won’t hold anything back.” His loud, scary words echo through her head. It had startled everyone around them, and at the time, she was embarrassed and angry at her father for causing a scene in a public place. 

She wishes her father was here. Her breathing grows faster. She wishes she could feel the comfort, the safeness again when he was with her. But, he isn’t. And he will never be there for her again, to yell at, to ward off, to protect her against leering men on the street. Things have changed since he’s been gone. Men seem to walk closer to her, their gazes lingering too long on certain areas. When she reaches a corner, she begins to pick up her pace, Shikamaru’s apartment almost in view. Haven.

Footsteps behind her sound louder and louder. Her feet move faster, it’s dark, too dark at night, his lights are on, she’s so close she can almost taste his nostalgic cigarettes- She knocks rapidly on Shikamaru’s door. She doesn’t know where the man is or if he’s still following her but all she knows is that she wants in and she’s going to get raped tonight by that man, she already smell his rancid breath, his dirty, grimy hands on her skin- 

“Ino?” His voice says. The door is opened, and his hair is down, damp from a recent shower. “Hey, are you alright?” 

She opens her mouth to speak about the terror and panic, but a loud sob comes out instead. She’s crying now, hot tears stream down her face, gasping for breath. “Shit, Ino.” He takes her inside and closes the door. “Just breathe.”

She nods.

He sits her down on the wood floor, and holds her tightly in his arms. She sobs harder, knowing how much she’s missed him and her father. Her eyes sting and her stomach is displeased by it’s contents. He holds her until she’s quieted down, and holds her even after that, until she’s done crying. 

“I have to go throw up.” She mumbles, so he stands her up and walks with her to the bathroom, pushing her hair out of her face and behind her ear. When she’s done, he gives her tissue to wipe her mouth with, and leads her to the bed. He hadn’t been this courteous in the beginning. 

She lies flat like a board in the bed as he pulls the covers over her and tucks her in. She looks like a child now; she’s always had somewhat of a baby face. He reclines on top of the covers next to her until she falls asleep. Sleeping next to her when she’s like this feels too wrong. Too fatherly.

That night, she dreams not of her father, but her mother. 

That night, Shikamaru dreams of Siamese cat with blue, crossed eyes lounging on a roof. 

In the morning, when they both wake, Ino suppresses her pride for just a second to apologize and thank Shikamaru. 

“I’m used to it.” He says, yawning. 

She doesn’t stay for breakfast, nor would he offer any. He isn’t the man she loves, and does not show her the tenderness of one when she can remember.


End file.
